Star Trek: The Fate of the Reacher
by Tribble in the Tardis
Summary: A young starfleet cadet is hoping to become a crew member of the USS Reacher. Instead, she is assigned to the Enterprise, and struggles to make herself useful. While the Enterprise is on a mission to a seemingly harmless planet, they discover the fate of the USS Reacher and its crew. (multi chapter, still in-progress)
1. Chapter 1

It was my very first day in space. I was nervous, excited, breathless. I was also extremely worried.

Of the 16 newly graduated cadets from the Academy, I knew only 12 would actually be chosen and assigned to a starship. And being the youngest, only 17, I knew my chances among the older, more mature cadets was slim.

The other scientists on board the shuttle were just as nervous as me, I could tell. They were pretending they had it all together, that they were cool and collected; but they seemed stiff. I knew that I wasn't the only one who had reason to worry. In fact, age aside, I would probably one of the first choices. At the academy, I studied archaeology and how it could be applied to alien civilizations, and could be used to further Starfleet's knowledge of alien planets. "To discover" was the motto of my area of study, and I was excited to do just that. I was not the first to take the class and apply it in the field, but I was one of the youngest. I was hoping to be assigned to the USS Reacher; if so, I would be under the command of Dr. Logan, one of the most renowned extraterrestrial anthropologists.

The shuttle arrived at the space station, and all the cadets seemed to tense up a little. The shuttle doors slowly opened with a loud hiss, and I jumped.

"First time in space?" the cadet next to me asked.

I nodded. I wasn't nervous about being in space; no, that's why I was excited. I was nervous about what was going to happen. What if I didn't get a spot on the Reacher? What would I do, being so young on a strange starship that I knew nothing about? What if nobody liked me? _What if I didn't even get selected at all?_

The other cadets were already filing out of the shuttle while I was still sitting there, lost in my worries. I quickly unbuckled my harness and jumped up. I bumped into another cadet. "Sorry," I mumbled.

"Watch what you're doing!" she snapped at me. _Oh, this is going swell, _I thought to myself. I stepped off of the shuttle, blinking in the harsh light of the massive room. There were shuttles lined up along each side, and everyone was running around, shouting orders, carrying boxes of supplies. It was busy; not frantic, but busy. We lined up, waiting for our orders. As the commander began reading out names, everything began to blur. I felt faint, like I was going to fall down and never wake up again. I closed my eyes tight, shook my head, and opened my eyes. I heard more names being called out. _Come on, come on! _I was agitated. _Why don't you call my name? _All of a sudden I heard it.

"Angela Wolf. USS Enterprise."

"What?" I said it a little louder than I meant to. The commander stared at me.

"Angela Wolf. USS Enterprise." He said, a bit slower. I stood there, dumbfounded. I wasn't sure how to feel. On the one hand, I was sort of disappointed. I was really hoping to be assigned to the Reacher. On the other hand, the Enterprise was one of the most incredible ships, and crew, in Starfleet history. And the fact that I was selected at all was a miracle. I stood there for a minute, not sure what to do.

"Miss Wolf?" I heard someone say behind me. I turned to see a young man standing there, a medical insignia on his chest. I recognized him, he was one of the cadets that had graduated last year. I was in his bio-research class. So, he made it to the enterprise, eh? Good for him. I smiled as he spoke, "I'm nurse McArthur. If you'll come with me, we'll board the Enterprise shortly."

The next few minutes were a haze. We sat in the shuttle, waiting for all the other crew members to board. I closed my eyes for a minute, trying to make the situation sink in. _The Enterprise. Youngest in your class and you're assigned to the damn Enterprise. Good on you. _I heard a loud thud and someone yelled "Dammit!" I opened my eyes, looking around to see what the commotion was. A man in medical uniform had apparently tripped over a young cadet's foot. "Sorry sir, really sorry," The cadet was apologizing.

"Yeah, don't mention it," The man replied. He sat down beside me, buckling up.

"Haven't got your space legs yet, huh?" I smiled at him. _If you wanna make friends, better start trying now, _I thought.

"Never have, never will," He replied. He extended his hand. "McCoy. Leonard McCoy. Chief medical officer."

"Holy shit," I said aloud. He smiled. "You're Doctor McCoy? I've heard a lot about you."

He frowned slightly and his eyes narrowed, "What have you heard?"

I laughed, "You don't want to know." He raised an eyebrow. I smiled to let him know I was joking. He looked at me for a second, and I knew he was trying to read me. He smiled, then turned away.

The shuttle had already filled up, and I was feeling more excited with each passing second. A blonde woman sat down beside me. "Hello." She smiled. "I'm Carol Marcus."

I smiled back. "Angela Wolf."

She gestured at the people sitting around us. "Well, cadet, you've certainly got a nice seat."

"Pardon?" I asked.

She laughed, "Well, you've sort of got the essence of the Enterprise here, right around you." She began introducing me to everyone.

"That's Commander Spock, first officer." I smiled at the Vulcan; he didn't smile back, but he nodded at me. "Lieutenant Uhura, communications officer. Commander Scott, chief engineer. Helmsman Sulu. Ensign Chekov. Dr McCoy you've already met." She smiled. "So. What are you? What's your job?"

"Extraterrestrial anthropology." I replied quickly.

"Vat's zat?" Ensign Chekov asked, arms folded as he knelt on his seat, leaning over the back of it to look at me.

"Archaeology, if you want to be specific. I study ancient alien civilizations." I answered. "But I also studied paleontology in school. So I'm qualified to study ancient alien life that doesn't have structured civilizations. The earth equivalent would be…dinosaurs. I study the ancient people of other planets, and I study the dinosaurs of space."

McCoy shook his head. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen." I answered.

"How many 17 year olds are we gonna let aboard this ship?" He said, "My God, it's gonna become an annual thing, isn't it?"

I hadn't even noticed the shuttle's engines turn on, but now it began to move. Sulu swatted Chekov in the arm, and Chekov turned around and slid into his seat. Scotty turned to face me.

"You ever seen a real life starship, lass?" He asked. I shook my head, and he smiled, "Well, brace yourself." Before I knew it the shuttle had left the station, and then I saw her. The Enterprise. She was massive, a city in space. There she was, big as life, and I was headed straight for her. My new home.

"Damn." I whispered. It was really all I could say. I might have thought of something poetic, something grand to say, if I wasn't so dumbstruck.

"Well, what do you think?" Scotty grinned at me.

"Better than the frickin Reacher, that's for sure." I said. I couldn't believe I had wanted to be on any starship besides this one.

"If you could describe her, in one word, what word would you use?" Scotty asked. I could tell he loved this, seeing how cadets reacted to the ship. To his ship.

I spoke quickly, saying the only word that came to mind.

"Magnificent."


	2. Chapter 2

I had boarded the Enterprise without any problems arising. Here I was, in my quarters, unpacked and ready for whatever happened. Which is to say…nothing. Nothing at all was happening. There were no sudden attacks by Klingons, no sudden radiation leaks, no problem with the engines; no immediate danger. And I was bored out of my mind.

I headed down to sick bay, thinking maybe Dr. McCoy could tell me how to stay…not-bored.

The long hallways of the Enterprise made it feel so massive, so enormous, so frightening. _What the hell are you doing here? _I thought to myself. _This is insane. You're out in the middle of nowhere, and you're seventeen years old. If mom could see you now… _A sudden twinge of pain shot through me. Oh, if only my mom was here to see me…

Before I knew it I was down in sick bay.

"What do you need, Wolf?" McCoy said, not looking up from the medical chart in his hand.

"Oh, uh, erm, sorry sir. I'll come back at another time." I answered.

He looked up before I could turn and walk away, "What do you need?"

I grimaced. "I'm kind of just…bored."

He gave a faint smile. "Well. That can easily be fixed. Why don't I show you the 637 different types of parasitic worms we've so far discovered, out here in the darkness of space? I've got all the records right here, in the ship's library. You know, for when you want some light readin'."

I grinned. "If you're trying to turn me off, Doctor, you're gonna have to find something that's not so awesome. I'd love to see your worms."

After I had finished the manual, I had so much more information about the ways people could die out here. Especially the Enterprise; out in the middle of nowhere, exploring strange planets we knew nothing about. And yet I was still bored. It felt like something was missing, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

I was in my quarters organizing my collection of old earth fossils when I heard the whistle sound off, and the Russian boy, Chekov, began to speak,

"Angela Volf, report to ze bridge immediately. Angela Volf, to ze bridge."

For a moment, I felt sheer panic. Why was I wanted on the bridge? I forced myself to block out the feeling, gathered myself, and headed for the bridge. As I walked down the halls, nobody seemed to notice me at all. They all had their own things to do, their own places to go. I was simply one crewmen among the hundreds on board. I was tiny. I entered the lift and took a deep breath. The panic was starting to come back and this time I could not force it away. The lift zipped open. "Permission to enter the bridge." My voice came out unexpectedly strong, there was no waver.

"Permission granted." The voice came from the Captain's chair. _Crap, this is it. I get to meet the Captain. I get to meet Kirk._

I stepped forward, my very first time on the bridge of the USS Enterprise. Not many people would ever set foot here. I took a deep breath as I felt a wave of energy surge through me. I quickly marched towards the Captain's chair.

"Sir." I nodded. And there he was. Captain James T. Kirk. The living legend. _He doesn't look like much, _I thought. _How old is he, 25? He barely looks old enough to drink, let alone command a starship. _

"Miss Wolf." He said. A small nervous laugh escaped me, and the bridge members turned to look at me. My eyes glanced towards the ceiling, I was irritated at myself. _Contain yourself. You're not in trouble for anything. You can't be. You didn't do anything wrong…did you?_

"Something funny, doctor?" The Captain asked.

_He called me doctor? Oh my gosh, I am a doctor. I'm a frickin scientist. Why did it take so long for me to realize? _

"Nervous laughter, sir. Not many new crewmembers are suddenly called to the bridge for no apparent reason."

Kirk smiled. "First time in space, doctor?" I nodded. "Well, now that you know all about the dangers out here on these planets, especially the worms," When he said that, I figured McCoy must have said something to the Captain. _Is that why I'm here? Did I do something to insult McCoy? _Kirk continued speaking, "Maybe, given it's your first time, you'd like to see what space really looks like when you're actually in the middle of it. What it's like looking out at the dangerous frontier."

"Sorry, sir?" I had been paying strict attention to what he was saying, but for some reason it didn't really compute.

The Captain nodded towards the viewscreen. I turned and stared, eyes wide. We had apparently dropped out of warp and were just outside a nebula. It was a canvas of beautiful colors, swirling around and blending together like some painter's abstract.

"I don't remember seeing this one in the records." I said, staring at the nebula's amazing blue color; soft, like the color of a jay-bird.

"Nope. Completely new. Was just discovered a little while ago, hasn't made it to the books yet. And here we are, the second starship to ever set eyes upon this."

I stood there, staring at it. It was huge. Whole solar systems would come from it, and those planets would later give life to entire cultures, and brand new species. History in the making. Life in the making.

Kirk stood up. "Welcome aboard." He said, as he walked towards the lift. "Sulu, you have the conn. Me and Spock are gonna go play some chess." He clapped Spock on the back as he walked by. I stood there, not sure what to do. Kirk entered the lift and stared at me for a second. He nodded at me and said, "Well? Come on." I quickly walked forward and stepped onto the lift, Spock right behind me.

"You ever played chess, doctor?" Kirk asked.

I grinned. "Never in my life, Captain. But I'm definitely willing to try."


End file.
